


Pretend to be normal

by sorrow_key



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: AU, Angst and Humor, First Time, Forced Marriage, Japanese Mythology & Folklore, Love/Hate, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-09-13
Updated: 2015-09-18
Packaged: 2018-04-20 09:41:33
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,908
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4782716
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sorrow_key/pseuds/sorrow_key
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kise, the youngest son of the Ruler of the Kitsune, is forced into marriage with the foxes' greatest enemy - the Tengu raven Aomine. He escapes from the wedding, dying on the run. However, he is soon reborn in the shape of a human.<br/>(English translation)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Author's Note and Arts for this work

**Author's Note:**

  * A translation of [Притворимся обычными](https://archiveofourown.org/works/1515758) by [Evilfairy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Evilfairy/pseuds/Evilfairy). 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: Neither Kuroko no Basket, japanese mythology nor this story or the arts belong to me. However, as I am to lazy for it, I won't specifically state that the author's note it's written from the original author's perspective.  
> The author's note also lacks a few sentences, as the correctness of the author's grammar shouldn't be interesting to you.

The story has references to japanese mythology, folklore and a bit of their culture (theatre). There will be notes for especially unknown information.

The author is a damn pacifist, who preaches living without war and the worth of every life. It probably shows.

Yokai - supernatural being of the japanese mythology

Kise - a nine tailed fox:

Aomine - a Tengu raven:

Midorima - a dragon:

* * *

Arts for this work. Again, thank you very much*-*

Kise from Olya250498

A romantic Kuroko from Rizu Miyazaki (Ritsu-kun)

Kise from yuko-kost

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If anyone reading this can read russian, but doesn't want to (like me, usually) I'd still recommend for you to read the original. There are just some things that can't be translated, plus, it's really easy to read.


	2. Chapter 1 Shocking news

"I'm telling you", a ringing, boyish voice resounded right above Kise's ears. "The Kitsune was somewhere around here! It was a fox with nine tails!"

Kise heard footsteps next to him, but they soon subsided, retreating. Someone else followed, almost stepping on his tails, but Kise had providently pressed his furry property to his chest. 

"You're lying", the boy's companion answered. "It's not here!"

"Okay, let's go", sighed the lad and the humans walked on, their voices soon dying down.

Kise smirked, removing the simple perception-altering spell from himself and continuing to lie beneath the tree. His mood was great and there was a reason for that. He had succesfully escaped from the castle, messed with some humans and now relaxed in someone's garden unpunished.

Kise let go of his tails, fluffing them up around himself, as if drowning in a furry, ginger-gold area. His ears drooped, not hearing the suspicious sounds in their relaxed state and the Kitsune already expected to take a nap when a shadow rose above him.

Kise lazily opened an eye, eying the one who had disturbed his rest. Looming above him was a yokai with green eyes that peered at him strictly through glasses. Behind his back, a scaly tail curled and his ears were hidden by thin webbings. A dragon.

"Midorimacchi", Kise murmured, squinting. "What are you doing here?"

Midorima sighed and rolled his eyes unhappily. His light green Kimono seemed somehow flowing and Kise thought that he would love to meet the charmer who'd created such a miracle.

"More importantly, what are **you**  doing here?", asked Midorima, frowning.

Kise clicked his tongue, stood up from his long occupied space and fixed his pale Kimono, that had been dirtied a little. Midorima threw him a disapproving look.

"This is the realm of men", he said harshly. "If you remember, our powers don't reach all the way here." Midorima's pupils dilated, which said something about just how angry he was. His long, almost snake-like tail whipped around his legs. 

"Don't be mad, nobody saw me", Kise puffed good-naturedly. "After all, I am a demon of cunning and deceit - humans can't even see, let alone hurt me."

Midorima only chuckled, calming his tail. This was the simplest demon of cunning he had ever met. An open book.

"Your father has been searching for you", Midorima said, clearly unsatisfied with being assigned the roles of both nanny and tracker by the Ruler of the Kitsune. He wasn't one of his subjects after all, and only lived at his court temporary.

"My father?", Kise wondered.

His movements, before so smooth, were now full of unease and uncertainty. Usually, the Ruler didn't care about him (now and then it seemed like he had even forgotten him). He had his older sons for that. Midorima's words filled his soul with a vague anxiety.

"So", Kise murmured, "let's go."

He put his palm on the dragon's shoulder, who almost unnoticably moved his arm and they disappeared with a slight pop. In the place where the Ayakashi had stood just a minute ago, the air was filled with bright, colourful sparks.

 

***

 

The castle's main hall was very bright. A lot of light streamed through the giant windows, creating a sense of a somehow odd purity and airy ease. Kise felt uneasy in his simple and dirty gown.

Midorima threw him a haughty glance and moved forth, not even looking at the servants and guards of lower yokai that straightened upon seeing him. This was understandble - he was representative and envoy of the dragons as the son of their Ruler. The middle son, naturally, but that didn't lessen the significance of his status.

Kise chuckled sadly at his thoughts. He himself was a Ruler's son, but he was mostly less respected than that Midorima. All the honor and attention belonged to his older brothers and sisters, who had recently left home, travelling to their own domains.

To be honest, that hadn't changed the situation.

"He's waiting for you in his office", Midorima said, frowning.

"Thanks", Kise replied, trying to surpress a shiver of worry. His last serious talk with his father had been about a hundred years ago, when Kise had still been a small pup and he was explained about who he was and the duties and bans that came with it.

The youth's mother, a ginger, nine-tailed fox, a demon of cunning, insidiousness and lies, who had left the family after her son's birth, not wishing to further warm the Ruler's bed. Not that he had mourned that - there had been no love between them, as was usual between the higher yokai.

That was how it came to be that the fur of the young Kitsune was coloured an unclear gold, instead of his father's silver. Many even doubted his belonging to the great, silver Kise clan.

Just what had he done that was bad enough for his father to decide to talk to him? Sighing and collecting his thoughts, Kise opened the office's door.

The Ruler, the highest Kitsune-demon, the Silver Fox, stood by the window, his back to the door. Neither his fox ears, nor his tails could be seen, he could hide them wonderfully, which spoke of his experience, power and considerable age.

"I came", Kise bowed, clenching his fists and breathing hard. His father emitted a suffocating aura, as all higher dark yokais did. But the Silver Foxes' was especially creepy.

The Ruler turned around to face his son and frowned as he looked him over. His gaze slid over the stains on Kise's Kimono, over his disheveled hair and the just as tousled fur on his tails. 

"Terrible", his father said, sitting down in his arm chair, gesturing for his son to follow his example.  "You don't look after yourself. Don't you dare forget who you are."

Kise shuddered and obediently dropped into the specified space. His father hadn't changed since their last conversation, despite over a hundred years having passed. For demons, that was no time at all, of course...

"I remember."

"That's good", the Silver Fox agreed, crossed his arms over his chest and examined him, noting all of his merits and flaws. "I have an important matter to discuss with you, so be serious and listen to me closely."

Kise nodded and prepared to listen.

"As you know, the relations between Ayakashi have been strained for a very long time. With some we got along better, with some worse, but still we have always fought each other.

I do not want to live in fear of clashing with other Yokai. We are stuck in one place, our aversion too deep ingrained. Starting small wars, in which our kinsmen die every now and then", the Fox paused, checking, if he had overdone it with his pathos and continued: "It cannot continue like this. The dragons were the first ones to understand that and sent Shintaro to us. That was an important step for developing a good relationship between us. But the dragons aren't our enemies. Our main problem are the Tengu ravens!"

Kise bit his lip, He'd heard so many tales, read so many ancient scrolls about those cruel Yokai, but never had he seen one. And didn't wish to change that.

"They have a ruling clan, just like us Kitsune. The clan of Aomine." Kise shuddered. Since childhood, he had been assured that there were no creatures more loathsome than the Aomine ravens. "I have decided to end this millenium long feud by forming an alliance with them-"

"What?!", Kise cried out, astonished, jumping up from his chair. "Father! That's impossible! Sooner the sky would fall, than us... with those... those..."

"Sit down!", the Ruler cut him off. Kise fell back into his chair and felt how a blush of shame at his loss of temper was rising on his cheeks. "This is for me to decide! We are going to form an alliance with them. My envoys have just returned from the Tengu's heavenly Citadel with their Ruler's agreement to this alliance. But this will not be a simple alliance. It will be stronger than stone. It will be sealed with a marriage!"

Kise stared at his father. His words died in his throat and he stupidly blinked, not being able to believe what he'd just heard. Not wanting to believe something like that.

"A marriage...?"

"Yes", the Silver Fox replied, frowning threateningly. "Your marriage to the Tengu's heir - Aomine Daiki."


	3. Chapter 2 Failed escape

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I now remember the only thing that does belong to me here: My mistakes. Sorry for them.

"No..." Kise recoiled. The shock was evident in his wide eyes. "No..."

The Ruler looked at his son mercilessly.

"Yes, Ryouta" his own first name burned him, his father never called him by his first name. "This marriage will be the pledge of peace between the Kitsune and the Tengu, the most powerful and indestructible treaty." 

"But father," inside him an abyss of fear and despair grew and widened with every word the calm voice of the Ruler uttered.

The Silver Fox walked up to his son, put his hands on his shoulders and looked him in the eyes.

"The wellbeing of two youkai clans depends on you. Aomine is not happy to bind himself to our clan through marriage either, but he is fulfill to do his duty, as he understands the importance of it. Take this" his father moved away from Kise to view the sight outside of the window. "Tomorrow your husband will arrive. We will descuss the details during the bride show. You will be prepared for the wedding ceremony. You may go" the Ruler dismissed his son, who was still in shock, with a majestic flick of his wrist. 

Kise moved towards the door, his step unsure. A fog that made it hard for anything to reach him engulfed him, the world faded, all sounds died down around him, becoming a pathethic copy of the merry cacophony that had always surrounded Kise.

Midorima stood behind the study's door, inspecting his manicure. His total indifference towards the world and feeling of absolute self-assuredness that drove Kise crazy at times and amazed him at others, seemed comical now.

Would he be that calm if he was going to be married to his archenemy? But then again, what was Kise on about? Midorima had left his home to live in a foreign land for his people...

"How did it go?" he asked drily, peeling himself from the wall. A legitimate question - He and Kise were pals, in a sense.

"Just wonderful" it was his own voice, but Kise felt strangely disconnected, like it was someone else speaking. "Just great, really."

A green brow was raised emphatically, as its owner snorted, which probably meant something like:

'Like I'd believe you, but I'm not gonna pry.'

"Now, now" Midorima muttered, stroking a small pink stone - Today's lucky item. Just to think about it, a superstitious youkai! Nature truly was full of wonders... "I didn't think you'd take the news of your own marriage to a Tengu so well."

Kise sighed, wrapping his arms around himself, as if trying to shield himself from the problem. His ears sagged and his tail hung at his back lifelessly, a mop's parody.

"So you knew?" he asked without any real interest, moving in the direction of his room. Midorima followed him.

"Yes, I am going to be the representative of the dragons and a witness, so that everything moves along fair and honorably. An event like this cannot come to pass without outside attention."

"I see" Kise replied. There's the attention he had been waiting for! And what honor did the Tengu ravens have? "Thanks for waiting for me, but I'd like to be alone, if possible."

Midorima nodded, though unsatisfied, but turned around and quickly disappeared into the maze of corridors. Taking a sharp breath, Kise pressed his forehead to the glass of a nearby window. 

This was almost like a betrayal from those who were important to him. Yes, it was true that he and his father didn't really talk that much and that he didn't get more attention than a rubber plant in the corridor... But this...

Tengu. Enemies, cursed fiends.

Their people were bound by thousands of years filled with hate and bad blood. And he would have to become the husband of a raven, settle down in their citadel, surrounded by them... Warming their future Ruler's bed... 

Hateful. Dishonorable. Low. 

They had lived for centuries without this alliance. Fighting, true, but such was the nature of youkai and changing it was stupid.

Even more so ruining his, Kise's, life doing that. But it was impossible to change his father's mind, so Kise would have to act according to the circumstances...

 

***

 

He was woken early in the morning, when not even the sun had risen. Kise blinked sleepily, grumbling annoyedly, but not fighting the Kitsune-servants, youkai of low rank, when they dragged him into a bath that seemed more like a small pool. Steam rose from the hot water, filling the quite spacious room. 

Kise took off his robe and blissfully entered the water that pleasantly smelled of special plants. The much brightened tails floated on the surface, surrounding their owner like a skirt. He pulled one of them out, wrung it out and looked at the wet fur. Pretty pathethic.

Then Kise tried to distance himself from what was happening. Only part of his conscience processed how diligently he was cleaned from non-existant dirt, how his light skin was scrubbed, until it seemed translucent and felt incredibly soft to the touch. 

The fur on his tails was combed especially thoroughly, as was his short, light hair, that now seemed to be cast in gold.  After that an expensive, beautifully embroided kimono was put on him, emphasizing the value of a son of the Ruler.

Kise looked at his reflection and sighed sorrowfully. For whom did they do all this? For the Tengu, low scum that they were? He was wrapped into an expensive paper like an exotic product. 

Precisely. An exchanged coin, product, guarantee of peace... Of a useless peace. He punched the mirror with the palm of his hand, cracking the thin glass. The shards dug into his arm, though they fell out at once and the wounds healed, leaving untouched skin behind.

"You look good" Midorima commented coldly, entering the room. He wore a new kimono, a pretty strict one at that, to emphasize his official role in the coming event. 

"That doesn't make this any easier for me" snorted Kise, hiding his hands in the long sleeves. "I'd like to look so hideously that everyone would be afraid to look at me."

Midorima didn't answer that. 

 

***

 

Kise's legs went numb from standing in the center of the hall, surrounded by the trusted faces of his father and the dragon. The Tengu hadn't shown up, as if making fun of them. Kise was furious. Inside of him roared a hurricane of rage. But, just as he'd been about to explode, dark figures flew through the giant, open windows of the hall. 

Indeed, they flew in. On their backs were giant wings of many different colours, as were they themselves. Kise froze in stunned silence, staring wide-eyed at the Tengu ravens. There were five of them. Their number one, it seemed to the Kitsune, was the one leading the group. 

He was tall and strong. His physical strenght was perfectly visible and the power of his dark aura almost pressed him to the ground. His dark hair was of a blue colour, as were his wings, which were impressive despite being folded behind his back. The bright blue eyes seemed to penetrate him through and through and Kise felt a chill run through his body. But when their eyes locked...

Kise felt like he was falling into a scary and dark abyss. He felt dizzy, pain pierced his insides, like he was shaken up to the very core, like someone was finding out everything about him. This was actual falling, it was a neverending flight, it was dying in constant agony.

Kise couldn't tear his eyes away, staggering, deafened by emotions. He was being pressured without even the use of any magic - The Tengu standing before him was that strong. Midorima touched his arm, bringing him back to consciousness and Kise shuddered, feeling how ragged and scared his breathing had become. Never in his life had he experienced anything like that. The gap between their powers was so great, it was frightening.

The youkai came closer, leaving his retinue behind. His step was confident, he was a warrior. Aomine, as the only one he could be was his husband, came very close to him and looked him in the eyes again. Apparently, there wasn't that much of a difference in their heights. Meeting his gaze was torturingly hard, but Aomine grabbed hold of his chin and Kise couldn't turn away. 

"Pretty, if weak" Aomine concluded, satisfied, tearing himself away from contemplation. His voice wasn't dry or threatening, more like pleasant, insinuating, but he emanated hidden danger. "A worthy addition to my collection..."

"Aomine..." resounded a grave voice and the Silver Fox entered the hall. Aomine regretfully tore his gaze away from the livid and scared Kise and turned towards the Ruler. 

"I like your son, Ruler" Aomine bowed, smirking slightly. In that smirk Kise saw so much smugness that it disgusted him. "He will be a worthy decoration to my bed. I will take great pleasure in enjoying myself with him."

Father raised a hand, interrupting the contemptuous speech that had hurt Kise's very heart. The Ruler's glare didn't promise the insolent fellow anything pleasant.

"My son will become your equal partner, not a boy toy, I'm sure you have enough of those... He will not be sneezed at!"

"And that we will discuss now" Aomine announced, smirking. "You are the ones in need of this peace, not we, so we demand the most. After all, our people like fighting, it's one of our basic needs" Aomine drew his lips into a half-insane grin... "I think giving your son into my posession is the least you can do to form this alliance!"

The Silver Fox pressed his teeth together, holding back his rage. Kise breathed hard. After he heard his words, everything within him screamed that something like that couldn't happen or else his fall, right after the other, into that abyss would be eternal.

And this would be no alliance - a humiliation for the Kitsune. They weren't human, but were arranging something akin to their little games. Kise couldn't let this happen. His honor and the honor of his people must not be trampled by these horrible Tengu!

"We will continue this discussion in my office" said the Ruler, gesturing for Aomine to follow him. Aomine winked at Kise and followed the Kitsune's father. Midorima threw a wary glance at his pal and joined them.

They were left alone in the hall with the Tengu entourage. His father's confidants were getting nervous, while those cursed ravens felt notably calm. Kise fastly ran through the plan that had suddenly appeared in his head. He had to run. There was no other way to save his people and himself.

"Excuse me," he asked, blushing sufferingly, "I am not feeling well. May I be excused?"

Nobody dared to stop him and Kise almost ran to his room. His heart pounded with an insane speed. He flew to the mirror, unwinding his belt and tearing off his kimono as he ran, not caring about preserving the material. He almost immediately slipped into simple throusers and a shirt, which not every lower youkai would agree to wear. 

After that he put one palm on the mirror's smooth surface and froze like he was trying to feel something. And a minute later, Kise grabbed something and pulled his mirror clone out of the vitreous surface. 

Said clone blinked, stupidly assessing his creator.

"You are Kise Ryouta, the youngest son of the Ruler of the Kitsune and now, you are going to put on this kimono," Kise gestured towards the attire he'd taken off, "and then you will go into the main hall to wait for your husband. Hold out as long as possible."

The copy nodded and Kise didn't think very long and lept through the window, leaving a spacy hole in his wake. It was a shame that he didn't have the time to create a full clone - this one would be found out in a few hours and by that time he should be very far away.

In the realm of men.

 

***

 

He was running for the seventh day without respite, but he could feel his pursuers closing in on him. No matter how many mirages he created, how much he muddled his trail, the ones chasing him were much more experienced than him.

But that didn't matter; he had already reached the realm of men. The only thing left was to leave this forest, then he was saved. Of course, amongst humans he'd always have to use illusions, but there was nothing he could do about that. The most important thing was to get some rest - he hadn't eaten or slept for a weak already, his magic was exhausted and the lad could barely move his feet.

Suddenly he felt how something constricted around his ankles and abruptly heaved him into the air. Kise barely managed to look around and notice that he had fallen into a trap. He was surrounded by crossbows that were pointing at him. Kise didn't manage to finish assessing the situation - the crossbows fired simultaneously...

 

***

 

Midorima looked at the corpse of the young Kitsune, gritting his teeth. Just recently he'd been alive, only a few days ago, but now he lay like a hedgehog, pierced by the crossbows' arrows.

The death of a higher Youkai was an incredibly rare phenomenon, as their ability to regenerate, speed, power and instincts protected the owner, but Kise had been on the run from them for too long, exhausting his magic ressources and strenght. 

"Demon hunters" said the Ruler, touching his son's forehead tenderly. His face was full of suffering and compassion. A lot of emotions for the Ruler.

"I swear to Kuroko" Aomine exhaled the name of the Tengu god's name. It was hard and uncomfortable to look at the beautiful Kitsune who'd died so he wouldn't have to marry him. It filled his chest with something sickening, something akin to compassion.

"There will be no alliance" the Silver Fox muttered shortly. He rose, his son in his arms. However, that would be useless soon, as the bodies of Youkai turned into light.

"I see" Aomine gritted his teeth. For all that he had said, the alliance was needed so badly that the Tengu were willing to sell their beloved heir for it. "I will tell my father."

The youkai closed the portal - The mourning started within the realm of the Kitsune. 


End file.
